Poker is a part of me and always will be

I love the game of poker.  I always have enjoyed playing and I probably haven't gone ten days without playing in a poker game in the past 9 years.  I probably haven't gone a few days more than a handful of times.  It doesn't hurt that I have always made money playing the game either.  In the past year or so and even more so since the spring, I have tested my skill and my love of the game by playing more hours than I ever have before.  The result has been far from burnout, but a better understanding, love, and knowledge of the game.  And some money has come with it which is always nice.

I have already played 700 hours of live poker in 2012. In the past three months alone I have played about 300 hours.  This is while still working a Monday thru Friday job that takes up about 43 hours of my week on average. Lately I have been taking one or two days a week off from poker.  It is nice to rest at home and watch a movie or go for a walk in the park on a day off but after just one day off I find myself itching to play again.  After playing so much over the past 9 years and so much lately I think I can finally conclude that I will not burn out on this game.  And how could I burn out on such an awesome game?

At the poker table you experience and see so much of real world reality.  You see life and human beings at their best and worst and everything in between.  I have made some great friends in the poker room and I have made a couple of enemies too.  I have met beautiful women, grumpy old men, people just out of prison, people about to go to prison, lawyers, drug dealers, doctors, athletes, unemployed losers, hard working laborers, students, actors and actresses (I played with Ricki Lake), former world champions of poker (I played with Tom McEvoy), poker authors (I played with Mason Malmuth) and even played with a man who seemed to have wise guy connections at the Venetian in Las Vegas a couple of years ago.  I use to prefer online poker--and sometimes I really do miss it--but I love the social aspect of the game when playing live poker.  As I said, you see the best and the worst in people that you can't see when sitting behind a flickering computer monitor.  Poker is a metaphor for life in many ways.  Poker is as American as it gets.  You are matched up in a battle of wits, discipline, logic, money management, and self control just like so many men at women are at negotiating tables in corporations all over the world.  The CEO of Mirage Resorts, Bobby Baldwin once said, "The only difference between a boardroom table and a poker table is the shape."

In poker you need to be able to read situations, read opponents, recognize patterns, sense deceit, avoid traps, calculate equity, estimate return on investment, analyze situations with imperfect information, know when to buy, know when to sell, and all the while keep complete control of your emotions and ego.  This is business 101.  The skills that you need in the poker room will serve you well in the business world.  And that is what is so beautiful about poker--it is a business and it is a game.  I play for money and making money is my number one priority but I love the challenge and the competition as well as the social camaraderie.  I will never stop playing poker.  In fact, in the coming months and years I will only play more. 

I have long considered playing poker full time.  I have heard the stories about when it becomes your job it becomes less fun.  I think that could happen to me if the only thing I cared about was the money.  Yes the money is most important, but I also love the competition and the challenge to get better and improve my game every day.  So for me, it will never get old.  Whether it becomes my career or remains my paying hobby, poker and I are attached at the hip.  It is a part of me and always will be.

Disciplined Degenerate

It is one of my favorite times of the year - FOOTBALL SEASON!

This blog is mostly about poker because the poker table is where I do most of my gambling.  But I LOVE FOOTBALL and I love to bet on football and it is time for the season to begin.  College football starts in 48 hours and I am fired up.  Overall I like the NFL's product more than I like college football's product by just a hair, but the gambling opportunities in college--with 4 times as many games each week--pulls college up to be even with or even more exciting to bet on than the pros.

I have been betting on football for a few years.  I have been keeping records of my wins and losses for the past two seasons.  I am not a big bettor.  My bets are usually in the $10-20 range and I will make anywhere from 5-15 bets a weekend.  My gambling and life bankroll are bigger than ever this year but it won't make me go crazy.  I will still bet small.  I bet on football for fun and I play poker for money.  So you won't see me risking hundreds of dollars on a football game like you will see me risking hundreds on a hand of poker.  Remember, I am the DISCIPLINED DEGENERATE.  I understand that to beat sports for a profit consistently you have to put in more time and research than I am able or willing to right now.  And even then because of the small edge that even an expert has--5 to 10%--you have to bet very big to make any significant money in the long run.  Poker is about making money.  Football betting is therapeutic, relaxing and fun (most of the time!).

Here are my results the past two years:

2010:

78-62  55.7%  + 5.9 units

2011:

102-102  50.0% + 0.26 units

Past two years combined:

180-164  52.3%  + 6.16 units


So as you can see I have actually beat the game for a tiny bit the past two years. I feel that overall I am a break even bettor.  Last year the reason I won a few bucks is because I won my two biggest bets of the year.  I bet 4 units on Stanford to cover against Notre Dame and I bet 4.5 units on the under in the Superbowl.  Most of my bets throughout the year are 1 unit bets.  If you flat bet 1 unit bets all year at -110 you need to hit about 52.5% to break even and beat the Vig.  That is almost exactly where I am over my last 344 bets.  Fortunately I chose wisely and won my bigger bets to show a small profit.  Whether I am a little better than average or lucky I have had a decent two years for an amateur.  I hope it continues this fall.  I will be in Reno with a friend this Saturday sitting in a casino sportsbook watching every single football game I can and betting on as many as I feel good about.  I have already placed several bets.  I thought I would share them here:

Week 1 college:

Cal -11.5 against Nevada 
I think Cal will be good this year. Their QB had a good second half last year and may step up this year. Their running game is always good and it looks like the Pack lost some of their best defensive players. I think this is a 34-20 type of win for the Bears

South Carolina -7 against Vandy
Gamecocks will be good and starting a game in conference on national TV is a great way to start the season with a big win and maybe even run up the score which Spurrier will do sometimes. National TV weeknight dogs historically do well, but Vandy actually hasn't.

UNLV + 9 against Minnesota
Minnesota has more talent and likely wins but with the Runnin Rebels fired up starting the year at home i think they can keep it close with their running game.  It will be hot (even at 8pm) and a long way from Minn.

Ohio State -23 against Miami Ohio
I think Urban Meyer will have his boys ready to play and they will be motivated this year despite bowl ineligibility like USC was last year.  They will keep the foot on the gas and win by at least 4 touchdowns

Tennessee -3 against NC State
I think Tenn could be a very good team this year and I think they are more than a FG better than the wolfpack on a neural field

Oklahoma -31 against UTEP
I think the Sooners will be a juggernaut offensively and could put up 60 in this one.  Once again i threw a few bucks down on the Stoops Troops to win the National Title.  I hope they start my year by picking me up a unit here because they will probably cost me a unit on the national title future.

Georgia -38 against Buffalo
I like the dogs to jump all over Buffalo and score a lot and allow very little.  It is a lot of chalk but this one should be ugly.

Kentucky +14 against Louisville
I don't see Louisville blowing this one out. They win but I think the cats keep it close

West Virgina -25.5 against Marshall
Gino Smith is ready for a big year and the WVU offense should be even better than last year with the second year in the system.  I think they could put 40-50 up against the Thundering Herd easily.  Just hope the D keeps the margin over 25.  This one scares me a bit because in recent years the Mountaineers seem to screw me whether I bet on them or against them.

Arkansas State +37 against Oregon.
I think Arkansas State will score some points this year.  Oregon's defense will be strong but i think with the ASU wide open attack they can score 14-20 points which would make Oregon need 50-60 to cover.  They could do it but I am gonna take the points.

Washington State + 12 against BYU
I like Leach's chance to score some points and with the high flying blitz happy scheme being implemented by the cougars from Washington they may be able to force a turnover or two and keep this one close.

Iowa -10 against Northern Illinois
I think the Hawks are a step above NIU in most categories and NIU lost their potent QB and their defense was weak last year.  I like Iowa by double digits

Virgina Tech Georgia Tech Under 48.5
With decent defenses and G Tech's running game I think this will be a smash mouth conference game without a whole lot of offense

Degen teaser Navy + 23 against Notre Dame Penn State PK against Ohio
I have to bet against Notre Dame whenever possible and getting 23 with the triple threat offense,  I will take it. I think Penn State feels the whole world is against them and will band together and win this game at home. Ohio is solid but they are solid in the Mac and Penn State only lost one defensive player to the drama and their D is very good. I like PSU in the 17-14 neighborhood.

These are all one unit bets. 

I also made a bet with a poker player who happens to be a Michigan Homer.  He bet me $50 that Michigan would beat Alabama straight up.  The point spread is double digits but he actually said he doesn't need the points and will make the bet straight up.  If I went into a casino and wanted to bet $50 on Alabama straight up without laying any points, I would get $10 back for a win.  It is safe to say that I am getting the best of it in this bet.  Whenever you have the chance to bet against someone who is betting on their favorite team, there is always a great opportunity to get the best of the bet.  I talk about that a bit more in my past blog about Faith Based Sports Fans.

Disciplined Degenerate 

Mercy just ain't professional

Should you have mercy at a poker table?  Most people would probably agree that there are no friends at the poker table but you also may be surprised how many people at a poker table will get upset at you for trying to take every last penny they have.  And yes, I am that guy.  I want every dollar you have.  Every dollar that you put on the poker table that is.  If you sit down with me at a real money table where the stakes are anything bigger than $20 I am there to take you down.  If I am in a home game with family or friends that may be a little different because the idea is fun and socializing--but in a game where the money won or lost can fill up my car with gas, or more, I play to win.  I play to win every last cent I can get.

It may sound cutthroat and ruthless but I look at it as a business.  I don't play poker for a living (yet) but it does supplement my income--some months more than others--and that money that is on the table is leaving in somebody's pocket, and I think it may as well be mine.

One of my favorite characters in film is portrayed by Paul Newman in The Hustler and The Color of Money.  He plays Fast Eddie Felson, a pool hustler and gambler who makes his money investing and gambling on excellence.  In The Color of Money he says that his profession "isn't about pool, it isn't about love, and it isn't about sex.  It's about money.  The best is the guy with the most."  He later says in the movie when Tom Cruise is feeling pity on an old man he is about to beat out of a few bucks, "You never ease off on somebody like that...not when there's money involved.  That's the problem with mercy kid, it just ain't professional."  That is how I try to live my poker life.  It is about money.

Last Saturday I came across a fellow poker player who did not appreciate my no mercy policy.  There is a player--let's call him Kevin--at my poker club who is a classic, "undisciplined" degenerate.  This guy has a gambling problem and an attitude problem to go with it.  Everything that you shouldn't be in a poker player, he is.  He has major tilt issues, poor money management, plays long sessions when he is losing, and plays on his ego.  He goes after players and has specific people he wants to bust constantly.  He also has the amazingly stupid belief that he should always have the biggest stack on the table.  And this is in a game where he is usually the 4th or 5th best player at the table--AT BEST.  He will be in the poker room every day for two or three months until he has taken such a beating that he leaves for months at a time.  But he always comes back and he is always the same. He always has disputes and arguments with people at the table and frankly is a real ass when he is losing.  I am a pretty laid back guy and him and I have never had any real issues, though I have never been buddies with him.

On Saturday afternoon I was playing in the game and had a $300 stack and he raised it up to $7 with a $500 stack and I called with KQ.  The flop came KQ2 (two spades) in a 4 handed pot.  We all checked to Kevin and he bet $23.  It was folded to me and I made it $65.  He called instantly. He was putting his money in the pot before the dealer even confirmed the total.  This is something he likes to do to try to slow people down when he has a hand that he does not want to fold.  Kevin doesn't understand that this behavior costs him more money than it saves him when playing good players.  Now I know for sure has a strong hand (perhaps AK) and he is going to pay me off.  It could indicate a strong draw, but I know I am ahead and it is likely a made hand with the preflop action.  The turn was a 7 and I bet $120.  Again, he called almost immediately.  The river was a 9 which was not may favorite card on the chance he had J 10 but other than that I was certain I had every other holding of his beat.  I bet the rest of my chips on the river which was about $110 more and now he tanked.  He studied me and I just stared at the board, trying to give nothing away.  He then said to the player next to him, "How do you raise with Q2 and hit that flop and get in this spot?"  Now that I know he has Q2 I am very happy and was almost certain he would call.  He began to talk to me, asking questions like "Is my two pair no good?"  He went on talking to me for a good two minutes and I did nothing but stare at the board and tried to give nothing away.  I really thought he would call and did not want to say anything.  He then said to me, "Just tell me my Q2 is no good so I can fold please."  I said nothing.  Finally he folded and was very angry.  He actually was mad at me for not showing him or telling him that his Q2 was no good.  For the rest of the session, for hours he would refer to that hand and was angry at me all night.  He said something to me after the hand along the lines of "you didn't have enough of my money to where you could just give me a break?"  I didn't say "NO ASSHOLE" like I was thinking but I did say "what are we doing here if not to win money?  Why did you just reload to $1000 in chips if you aren't trying to win money?"  He said "To bust your ass."  Which I responded "that is exactly what you should do."

The rest of the night he said every time I was in the blind he was raising the pot no matter what (smart guy huh?) and was on tilt for quite some time. He offered the dealer a $100 tip if he busted me.  He must have loved it when I busted another player with a Nut flush over a lower flush and saw me win more money.  He thought I had enough.  But I didn't and I don't now.  I will try to win every dollar Kevin brings to the table now and in the future.  And with the target that he has placed on me now probably only increases my chances of winning in the long run.  He is playing on ego and will make a mistake at the wrong time and I will take his money.  I will not have mercy on him or anyone else.  As Fast Eddie says, "it just ain't professional."

Disciplined Degenerate

Is tight right in no limit hold em poker?

There is a theory that "Tight is Right" in poker.  This theory simply says that you should play few hands--good cards only--and when you do play hands play them strong and aggressively.  What you want to do in poker to be a winning player is not quite so simple but following the tight is right theory would make many poker players more successful than they are now.  In most poker games I do believe that it is possible to be a "nit," even an extreme, nit and win.

I would probably fall under the category of what most would consider a nit.  It doesn't bother me to fold 20 hands in a row.  It never has and never will.  I look at poker as a long run game and I don't care if I win tonight or tomorrow night or even this week.  I care about how I do over the year.  And so far--knock on wood--I have never had a losing year (since I began playing in 2003).  While it is true that I mostly play good cards, that is not my only goal.  My goal is to be in profitable situations.  The cards can sometimes be a lot less relevant than other factors in deciding whether a hand is profitable.  And that is what matters....Is the situation profitable?

There is a player at my local club that I would consider to be the best player of all of the regulars.  He is on a short list of players in our poker room that I try to avoid playing pots with unless I am loaded with the nuts or close to it.  If he raises the pot in early position and I look down at A 10 on the button I will fold to him.  Not because I am never holding the best hand there, but because I am holding a marginally good hand and will be forced to play with a player who reads players better than anyone else in my town and can likely outplay me even when my hand hits the flop or is better.  Maybe I am a nit for folding to him but I would rather wait for a better spot or a worse player to play a pot with.  I don't need to play that hand.  There will be another hand dealt in just a minute and there are weak players at the table.  I also am able to do something at the poker table that almost nobody can do these days...control the ego.  I play poker to make money.  Not to beat the best or outplay the best or dominate my competition.  If you make $399 winning 25 pots in three hours and made great bluffs and great calls good for you.  But If I made $400 winning one pot in the same three hours--by my rules of success--I played better than you.  It is all about money for me.

Last night, tight was right for me.  I played poker for 6 hours and won three pots of significance all night and I turned my $200 buy in to a $750 cash out.  I did it by winning three hands!  What I mean by hands of significance are pots that really lowered or elevated my stack that you would notice.  I did win several other hands throughout the night, but they were all small pots.  And I don't think I lost more than $20 or $30 on any other hand in the 6 hours.

On one hand I flopped a pair and a flush draw with 85 of spades.  I bet $15 on the flop and a player (one of the weakest players at the table) raised $15 more on a flop of Q 9 5.  I called the additional $15 and a 4 of spades hit the turn.  I checked and he bet $40.  I bet all in for about $130 total and he called with a QJ and was drawing dead.

A short while later the same player who I beat with the flush raised to $12 and two other players called and I looked down at AA.  I made it $50 to go and the original raiser called and the others folded.  The flop came Q 3 5 with two clubs.  He checked and I bet $100.  He called and a King hit the turn and he checked.  Based on my read of him at the time and my past experience I felt 90% sure I still had the best hand and shipped my last $151.  He took a few minutes but decided to call with the 10 3 of clubs.  I was a little more than a 2-1 favorite as the dealer put the Jack of spades on the river and I collected the $600 plus pot.

A little bit later I had QQ and put the very same player all in preflop when he three bet my preflop raise.  He had King high and my Queens finally busted him from the game.

In less than one hour I played three pots, all against the same player and almost quadrupled my stack.  Not only did I only need to play good cards to win, I only needed to play with him.  You can be a table with 5 sharks but if there is at least one fish or two it is still possible for the game to be profitable.  I played in profitable situations last night.  I had good cards against a bad player.  Those are the situations to look for.  When you are playing low stakes you can win by "nitting it up" that way.

Sometimes profitable situations present themselves in other ways and it doesn't mean that you have to have good cards.  Last night a fairly loose player opened for $7 and I had 10 7 of clubs on the button and called.  I called because the player was not a real good player, I have a good read on how he plays, If I cooler him in the slightest he will stack off for his whole buy in, and I had position.  All of those things combined, despite not having a real strong hand made the situation profitable.  He ended up missing the flop and I bet the turn when he checked on a 5 8 Q Q board and I won the pot with 10 high.  My cards were not strong but the situation was profitable in my opinion due to many factors. You can follow the Tight is Right theory and still play 10 7 if all other conditions are favorable.

Tight is Right to me means playing selectively with your situations, not just the hand value of your cards.  You can fold an A7 and call with a 10 7 and still be correctly playing as a nit.  Let them call you a nit.  Let them call you a tight ass or a rock.  Let them call you whatever they want as you stack chips and profits.  And don't care if the profits came from them or anyone else.  Money is money and that is why I play.

Disciplined Degenerate

No time for anything but poker

I have not been blogging as much lately.  But the reason for that is good, from a perspective of a gambling degenerate (who is disciplined!) determined to gamble everyday of his life.  I have been too busy gambling!  I have not totaled the hours yet but I am pretty sure that I played more hours of live poker in July than I ever have before in any month.  I probably put in about 140-150 hours at the table.  And don't forget, I have a full time job that takes up about 43 hours of my life each week.  So you can see why when I have an hour or two of downtime on this evening or that, the last thing I feel like doing is blogging.  But I want to try to keep this blog going and there is no reason I can't blog at least once a week.  I will try to do better at that.

In case your were wondering July was a good month at the tables.  I did show a profit and that is the goal at the end of every month and every year.

I had a really unique hand come up a week or two ago that I feel is worth mentioning.  I don't think I have ever seen what happened in this hand at a poker table before.  I was on the button and somebody straddled to $6.  One person called and then I called on the button with 97 suited.  The straddle checked his option and we saw a flop three handed.  The flop came 5 8 2.  The straddle checked as did the other player and I took the free card.  They both checked again when a King hit the turn.  I decided to take a stab at the pot in position and bet $10.  Both players called.  The turn was a 6 giving me the absolute nuts.  The person who was the straddle bet $20 and the other player called.  I raised it to $57 with the nuts and then the original bettor came over the top all in and the other player called as well.  It is always nice to get two people going all in against you with the nuts but I figured I was chopping with at least one of them.  The straddle turned over 34 for a straight, the other player turned over 74 for a bigger straight and my 97 beat them all and I took the whole pot.  Needless to say this hand was talked about for sometime that night in the poker room.  I am pretty sure it is the first time I have ever seen three different straights completed with both players using both of their whole cards on one river card.  I have seen three straights many times but to see three completely different straights made on one card, with all players using both of their whole cards was pretty amazing.  The mighty 6 of hearts was an extremely powerful card on that board! 

It just goes to show you that when you are playing No Limit Hold em, even the smallest and most boring pots can explode with excitement when the right card hits.

Disciplined Degenerate